Finding Meaning in Fields Close to Home

When I step out into the farmland that stretches just a mile away from my studio, it's not about capturing every detail as if I'm holding a camera. Instead, what really touches me most is the human side of it all—the structure of the fields in fall and winter. Those seasons seem to strip the land down to its essence. It's raw. And that's what I love to paint: the feeling behind that starkness, the emotion of the moment .

I've found that wandering through these fields, especially during the colder months, makes everything a little more alive. The land just feels exposed, kind of like it's letting you in on a secret. So, my process starts with walking around, sometimes driving, just taking it all in. I’m not exactly sure what I'm looking for, but when I see it, I know. There's something in the light or the way the wind moves through the fields. It's that odd moment when a scene grabs you and says, "Here’s something" and you can't help but try to capture that.

Painting Emotion, Not Details

Now, I'll be the first to admit that I’m not out there trying to paint the fields like they look in a photograph. That’s not me. In fact, it’s the opposite. What I want is to paint what the scene feels like—not what it looks like. There's a big difference. I’m not interested in showing every blade of grass, every perfect cloud. That’s what cameras are for. My goal is to get at the spirit of the landscape—the emotion it stirs up in me.

It’s funny, though. Sometimes, when I’m in the middle of a field with my camera or my sketchbook, I start to wonder why this particular scene is catching my eye. I could'have passed ten other spots that day, but something about this one just hits differently. I’m just trying to connect with it. So I start painting, and I don't worry if it ends up looking exactly like what’s in front of me. It’s not about that.

A Journey to the Soul of the Scene

I paint with passion, not precision. That’s the way I see it. It’s not about copying what's out there and more about how I’m feeling in the moment. It's kind of a funny thing, painting like this some folks might think it's weird not to represent the scene as best you can, but for me, it’s different.

In the end, I guess I’m not painting the land. I’m painting my experience of it. Hopefully comes through on the canvas.